Thirteen suspected members of a drug cartel died Monday in an armed confrontation with authorities in the Mexican state of Sinaloa.

Four other suspects were arrested and nine people kidnapped by the cartel were freed after the confrontation occurred in the municipality of Guasave, according to a social media post by The Secretary of Public Security, Omar Garcia Harfuch, indicated that security agents on patrol were attacked by armed men hiding under a bridge, prompting police intervention. Following the shootout, agents also seized seven vehicles, high-caliber weapons, and tactical equipment, Garcia Harfuch added. Although the cartel to which the slain criminals belonged has not been specified, authorities consider the municipality of Guasave to be the center of operations for “El Chapo Isidro.” Initially, there were even reports of his capture in this operation, but this has not been confirmed by the authorities. According to federal investigations, the criminal cell “Los Mazatlecos,” led by Fausto Isidro Meza Flores, terrorized the population in the northern part of the state when a territorial dispute began with the Sinaloa Cartel. Since 2012, in the United States, the US District Court for the District of Columbia initially indicted Meza Flores, and in 2019 filed a second federal indictment and issued a federal arrest warrant for him after he was charged with several counts of drug trafficking and the use and possession of a firearm.